OUT OF THE PAST: High profile duels garnered attention

By Marlene Womack / The News Herald

Published: Saturday, March 30, 2013 at 12:44 PM.

During Clark’s years in politics, those in office were expected to be fearless. They often settled their disputes and differences in the old-fashioned way by provoking an enemy then engaging in a duel.

In 1803, a vacancy occurred in a judgeship of the Western Circuit. Clark favored John Griffin, his brother-in-law, for this position, and Virginia-born William H. Crawford with presidential ambitions backed his law partner, Charles Tait, for this judgeship.

Duels were nothing new to Crawford who in a duel killed Peter Van Allen, a Clark supporter, in 1802.

Tait won the judgeship and remained in that position until 1809 when he was elected to the U.S. Senate. But Crawford never let the issue die and continually accused Clark of undue influence trying to get his relative appointed to the office. Clark knew he had an enemy in Crawford. Gen. Andrew Jackson felt the same way about Crawford.

Newspapers all over the state published letters involving the controversy between Crawford and Clark. Crawford became so enraged over some of the accusations that he challenged Clark to a duel. But the duel between Crawford and Clark never took place because Gov. Milledge ordered arbitration in which neither man lost face with the so-called agreement reached Dec. 12, 1804. But Clark still hungered for a duel with his adversary.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the last article on dueling, which once was popular in the South.

The location of the duel between Col. Augustus Alston and Militia Brigadier General Leigh Read was set at Dec. 12, 1839. They were to travel to the usual place for such meetings — Mannington’s, just over the Georgia line since they were illegal in Florida. Alston left his home with friends. Those interested in watching the duel made their own way to the spot.

According to Ellen Call in her book Florida Breezes, “it was a chilly, misty morning; the sun itself seemed to shrink away from the direful scene and men stood apart, and in groups, silent and solemn, but neither love nor law raised even a whispered condemnation.”

The two men remained dignified and quiet and hid all emotion if they felt any. They proceeded back to back and at the word “wheel” they turned and began the count. They reached the number three and Alston fired then he stood holding his rifle across his chest. At the same time, Read aimed, and Alston fell dead in front of him.

When he realized what he had done Read ran to the fallen man. But friends held him back realizing that even though they had been friends it didn’t seem right for Read to put his hands on his opponent.

Surprise Ending

Those in attendance were shocked to see Alston drop because Read was not a good shot. Some knew the reason, however, when they saw Alston slip and lose his balance, firing wildly. A messenger brought the direful news of Alston’s death to his home. “His wife swooned away,” but his sisters refused to believe it until the body was brought to them.

They called Read a murderer and dug out the shot that killed their brother. They had it reshaped and sent to their brother Willis Alston in Texas with the order to kill Read, the man who murdered their brother. Willis traveled by boat and arrived at St. Marks before going on to Tallahassee. Willis and Read exchanged fire but no one was killed. Willis made another try at avenging his brother’s death by firing at him as he rode with his wife in a carriage. The shot never reached Read.

Months passed and most believed Alston returned to Texas. Finally, in April 1841, Alston stepped out of a doorway and poured two barrels from his shotgun into Read’s back on a Tallahassee street. Alston was taken to jail but escaped with the help of his family.

GeorgiaGov. John Clark

Along West Beach Drive, retired Georgia Gov. John Clark was interred in a grave near his wife and two grandchildren in the 1830s. They remained in that location until almost 100 years before The Daughters of the American Revolution removed those in the graves back to Georgia with burial at Marietta National Cemetery in 1923.

During Clark’s years in politics, those in office were expected to be fearless. They often settled their disputes and differences in the old-fashioned way by provoking an enemy then engaging in a duel.

In 1803, a vacancy occurred in a judgeship of the Western Circuit. Clark favored John Griffin, his brother-in-law, for this position, and Virginia-born William H. Crawford with presidential ambitions backed his law partner, Charles Tait, for this judgeship.

Duels were nothing new to Crawford who in a duel killed Peter Van Allen, a Clark supporter, in 1802.

Tait won the judgeship and remained in that position until 1809 when he was elected to the U.S. Senate. But Crawford never let the issue die and continually accused Clark of undue influence trying to get his relative appointed to the office. Clark knew he had an enemy in Crawford. Gen. Andrew Jackson felt the same way about Crawford.

Newspapers all over the state published letters involving the controversy between Crawford and Clark. Crawford became so enraged over some of the accusations that he challenged Clark to a duel. But the duel between Crawford and Clark never took place because Gov. Milledge ordered arbitration in which neither man lost face with the so-called agreement reached Dec. 12, 1804. But Clark still hungered for a duel with his adversary.

Clark and Crawford

The problem between the two worsened when a man named Robert Clary accused Clark of buying land with counterfeit money. Clark blamed Crawford for spreading additional falsehoods about him. After more accusations, a duel between Crawford and Clark took place on Dec. 2, 1806 at High Shoals in Indian Territory.

In the engagement, Clark grazed Crawford’s left wrist with a single ball. Rather than risk the death of either of these powerful leaders, the seconds stopped the contest at that point.

Several months later as the long and bitter strife continued, Clark challenged Crawford to another duel in July 1807, but Crawford refused and saved face under the code because no new incident had been committed between the two men.

Radford & Roney

Clarkwas elected as governor, and Crawford became secretary of the treasury.

In 1931, the Panama City Pilot and the St. Andrews Bay News carried an article on the bloody duel that took place in Hartford, Ala. On Sept. 9, ex-Mayor J.H. Radford and Police Chief J.C. Roney held a “shoot out” while innocent bystanders scattered for cover.

Bad blood existed between the two for six months owing to raids made by Prohibition enforcement officers on Radford.

Both men drew pistols and began firing at close range. After the battle, Roney was found dead with four bullets in his body. Radford was taken to the Dothan Hospital but died an hour later.